Like Mother, Like Daughter
by Liisa Vatanen
Summary: After Nyxeris's death, Liara reflects on what she has become, and whether what she has become is closer in nature to that of her mother than she thinks. Spoilers for ME2. One-shot.


**Disclaimer:** Surprise, surprise, I don't own Mass Effect or Mass Effect 2.

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Nyxeris was dead.

_Duplicitous bitch._

A heavy warp from Liara's hand, followed by a biotic throw that catapulted her into the office wall had ended the infiltrator's life. A clean death: broken neck – much nicer than a bullet to the head. The blood would have been laborious to dispose of. She felt remorse only for Nyxeris's wasted talent; for being so foolish as not to realise that her secretary was, in fact, a spy. A spy who would have killed her had she not discovered the truth. It was all just a matter of time.

As she stared at the lifeless body slumped against the wall before her, it struck her that, despite asserting she was most definitely not her mother to Shepard some hours ago, she was slowly turning into the very person she tried so hard not to be. Cold, ruthless, unforgiving.

_Have you faced an asari commando unit before? Few humans have…_

The words rolled off her tongue with incredible ease, though she surprised even herself when they did. Her mother had said those very words on Noveria two years ago, but it had been the corruption, courtesy of Sovereign, dictating her words and her actions.

Liara was not corrupted by Sovereign. She was corrupted by something much more profound, something fuelled by deep-seated emotion. It was a hunger so strong that sometimes she would forget who she was, and she would succumb to the control it held over her.

Revenge.

No one had ever been hired to kill her before. It was a concept she could not even begin to comprehend. The geth during her Prothean research on Therum didn't count. They were merely doing Saren's bidding: retrieving her for him to use as a tool for his heretical enterprise, and death was the only other option. She had had a choice. But Nyxeris had been hired to kill her, and she wouldn't have had a choice. Shepard had, effectively, been hired to kill her mother. Her mother was evil. Did that make her evil, too? No… she was not her mother.

"I am not my mother…"

_Have you faced an asari commando unit before? Few humans have…_

They were just words. She had no intention of acting upon them. It had simply been an empty threat – meaning to elicit fear to hurry proceedings along a little. Her mother would have followed through with her threats; of that, she was sure.

And then Shepard burst through the door of her office, her emerald eyes wide with worry after learning of Nyxeris's schemes to dispatch Liara. She seemed relieved when she caught sight of Liara at the western wall, standing over Nyxeris's still frame.

Shepard was undoubtedly a wonderful commander. Her skill was astounding, of course, but that was not what made her great. She was willing to do just about anything to help her crewmembers; her friends. There had been a time when Shepard would have travelled to the far reaches of the galaxy for Liara, or leap right into a black hole if she asked her to. Two years had dissolved whatever had been between them, but feelings still remained. She had exploited those feelings, along with Shepard's readiness to help her in any way, shape or form, and had used her to retrieve and transfer information on the Shadow Broker. Her mother had used people like that before – manipulating those who cared for her, for her own selfish gain.

She was _not_ her mother.

Shepard had brought that blasted Justicar along with her, too. She was being replaced. The Justicar was far more powerful than she had ever been; far wiser, as well. They couldn't have known each other for very long, but already she could see a look of admiration in the elder asari's eyes. She too had looked upon Shepard in the same way when they first met, and it had grown into something much greater than admiration. She'd loved her. Now this new asari would love her, too.

It was all just a matter of time.

She moved over to her desk and sat down, lacing her fingers together. "Shepard. How may I help you?"

She was most definitely not her mother.


End file.
